Chelsea are facing the very real prospect of losing captain Reece James this summer.
Fans were reminded of the frightening prospect for Blues fans said on our show Inside Chelsea, which raised the possibility that James could leave the club after 19 years.
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The 26-year-old is enjoying one of his best seasons in a Blues jersey after years of injury problems.
James played at right-back and in midfield, reminding everyone that he is one of the best players in the Premier League.
He is also the most popular man among Chelsea fans and they believe the chances of him leaving are almost unthinkable.
But the prospect of Trent Alexander-Arnold leaving Liverpool was also high – and the Blues are facing a threateningly similar situation.
While Chelsea have tied most of their big-money superstars to long contracts, James only has 18 months left on his current contract, meaning he will enter the final year in July.
This leaves Chelsea vulnerable to a situation where a player of significant value leaves on a free transfer.
Former Blues defender Jason Cundy insists the club’s owners BlueCo would never allow this under their current model.
Cundy fears an unthinkable James transfer
He told Inside Chelsea: “Look at this room. He’s going to be one of the highest paid players at the club. They’ve got to do something about that.”
“We have to keep Reece James. We have to somehow find a way to get him to sign a new contract.
“Look at what Trent did at Liverpool. If James is coming into the last year of his contract you can’t let that happen. He could leave for nothing.”
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“Marc Guehi is worth three times what Man City just paid for him.”
“This is wild”
Cundy, who in addition to his role as co-host on our Sports Bar also works as a presenter for Chelsea, then gave us the inside scoop on the club’s current player trading strategy.
He said: “One thing I understand from the new owners when they came in… was that they were amazed that we were letting Antonio Rüdiger and Andreas Christensen – who were worth more than £100m between them – walk for free. They couldn’t imagine that.”
“I will be amazed and amazed if they allow Reece to have so much power without signing a new contract.
“It’s a fear. It’s a big worry. A football career doesn’t last long. Players want to know where they’re going.”
“If Reece now decides that this project isn’t for him, unfortunately the club will have to sell him in the summer. I don’t want to scaremonger or anything like that…”
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“As far as I know, they won’t allow what Trent did to Liverpool and Rüdiger did to Chelsea.”
The show’s host, Chelsea fan Olivia Buzaglo, was stunned as she replied: “That’s wild.”